Nail bath

ABSTRACT

A nail bath ( 1 ) has a surface ( 7 ) provided with one or more wells ( 8 ) for nail treatment solution. The one or more wells ( 8 ) have a disposition generally corresponding to the positions of the ends of the fingers and thumbs of one or both hands of a user. A cover ( 4 ) cooperates with the surface ( 7 ) to define a housing ( 2 ) in which the surface ( 7 ) serves as a floor. The housing ( 2 ) substantially encloses a space defined between the floor ( 7 ) and the cover ( 4 ), apart from a single opening ( 3 ), in the case of a one hand nail bath, or two openings, in the case of a nail bath for both hands, through which the hand or hands of a user extend(s) into the enclosed space during use of the nail bath.

BACKGROUND

This disclosure relates to nail baths; that is: containers into which a person's nails may be immersed during a beauty treatment.

Customers visiting a beautician for treatment of their nails are commonly required to immerse their nails in solutions in a small bowl. The solution may commonly comprise acetone or other organic solvents for removing old nail varnish. The bowls are often warmed by being placed within a wider shallow bowl containing warm water.

The organic solvents commonly employed are volatile. Thus solvent is lost to atmosphere, reducing possibilities for re-use or recycling. Solvent-laden air presents a Health and Safety problem for staff and customers, as the solvents are commonly inflammable as well as unhealthy for staff and customers exposed to them, especially over long periods.

Described below is a preferred embodiment of nail bath which seeks to reduce or alleviate these problems.

SUMMARY

According to a first aspect of this disclosure, a nail bath comprises: a surface provided with one or more wells for nail treatment solution, the disposition of said one or more wells generally corresponding to the positions of the ends of the fingers and thumbs of the two hands of a user, and a cover cooperating with said surface to define a housing in which said surface serves as a floor, said housing substantially enclosing a space defined between said floor and said cover, apart from openings through which the hands of a user extend into said space during use of the nail bath.

A nail bath for one hand only is also contemplated. Thus, according to a second and alternative aspect of this disclosure, a nail bath comprises: a surface provided with one or more wells for nail treatment solution, the disposition of said one or more wells generally corresponding to the positions of the ends of the fingers and thumbs of a hand of a user, and a cover cooperating with said surface to define a housing in which said surface serves as a floor, said housing substantially enclosing a space defined between said floor and said cover, apart from an opening through which the hand of a user extends into said space during use of the nail bath.

Preferred embodiments may have one or more of the following features: There are individual wells for each finger and thumb. The floor includes a raised pad disposed for resting the palm of a hand thereon when inserted through said opening. The floor cooperates with a bottom surface to define an underfloor chamber that is both closed and beneath the floor when the nail bath is in use for treatment of a user's nails, the underfloor chamber optionally containing warm water, the or each well being defined by a circumextending sidewall and a well bottom, and the or each well extending down into the underfloor chamber, so that at least the sidewall(s) may be surrounded by warm water when such water is contained in the underfloor chamber. In one arrangement, the nail bath is formed from three plastics components, namely the cover, the floor surface and the base portion, the cover and base portion being adapted to releasably clip together, and the floor surface being provided by a plate adapted to be trapped between the cover and the base when clipped together. In an alternative arrangement, the nail bath is also formed from three plastics components, namely the cover, the floor surface and the base portion, but, in this case, the floor surface and base portion are connected together by at least one of fasteners, adhesive and melt welding to form a generally closed unit in which the underfloor chamber is provided internally, this chamber being provided with an openable nozzle for filling with warm water or emptying, and the cover fitting over the generally closed unit. Handhold portions are provided to facilitate carrying the nail bath with the floor generally horizontal to avoid spillage of nail treatment solution from said wells. The handhold portions comprise, for one or for both hands, a main hand-receiving portion on the underside of the base portion and a thumb receiving portion on the outer side of the cover.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of nail bath are described below by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a nail bath;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a the nail bath of FIG. 1 with a cover removed to expose a plate having a plurality of wells in the surface thereof;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the nail bath, as shown in FIG. 2 with the cover omitted, but on a reduced scale;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a base portion of the nail bath of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an exploded view showing the components of the nail bath of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the nail bath of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a rear elevational view of the nail bath of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is an underneath plan view of the nail bath of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is side elevational view of the nail bath as seen from the left in FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the whole nail bath, including the cover, taken in a plane corresponding to the line X-X in FIG. 3;

FIG. 11 is a similar sectional view of the nail bath taken in a plane corresponding to the line XI-XI in FIG. 3;

FIG. 12 is a similar sectional view of the nail bath taken in a plane corresponding to the line XII-XII in FIG. 3 and showing a nail immersed in a well of the nail bath;

FIG. 13 is a view similar to FIG. 5 for an alternative embodiment of nail bath; and

FIG. 14 illustrates how the nail bath of FIG. 14 may be filled with hot water.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As best shown in FIG. 1, a nail bath 1 for left and right hands comprises a housing 2 that is generally closed apart from two openings 3 for insertion of the user's hands therethrough for a nail treatment, as explained in more detail below. It should be understood, however, that a nail bath may be constructed in an otherwise similar fashion but for a single hand only. It would thus have only a single opening 3.

In this embodiment, nail bath 1 is formed from three plastics components shown in exploded view in FIG. 5, namely: a cover 4, a plate 5 and a base portion 6, the plate 5 being trapped between the cover 4 and the base portion 6 during assembly.

The plate 5 defines a floor 7 to an upper chamber of the housing 2 accessible through openings 3 and otherwise defined by upper portion 4. Floor 7 is provided with a plurality of wells 8, each formed with a well bottom 9 and a circumextending sidewall 10, and each arranged to receive a small quantity of a nail treatment solution for immersion of the end of a user's finger 11 therein, as shown in FIG. 12. As best shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the wells 8 are disposed in a pattern generally corresponding to the positions of the ends of the fingers and thumbs of a user whose hand is inserted through the openings 3. Floor 6 preferably also defines upstanding pads 12 disposed for resting a user's palm 13 thereon as shown in FIG. 12.

Each opening 3 is defined by the surface of plate 5 and an arch 14 formed in upper portion 4, and having sides 15 and 16 and an arch top 17. Cover 4 of the housing 2 is defined by a top portion 18 terminating at arch tops 17, and respective front 19 and rear 20 sidewalls into which the top portion 18 smoothly curves. As best shown by the plan view of FIG. 2 with the cover 4, the outline of the housing generally follows the shape of two hands placed close to each other in a natural position in front of a user with the digits spread slightly. As a result, front sidewall 19 is concave towards the front and terminates at arch sides 15. Rear sidewall 20 is of more complex profile with a central portion 21 that is concave towards the rear and portions 22 on either side that are convexly curved outwardly and terminate at arch sides 16. Sidewall 20 is provided with depending clips 23 at opposite sides of the upper portion that releasably clip into recesses 24 in the base portion to hold the housing together.

Base portion 6 takes the form of a shallow dish 25, as best shown in FIG. 4, with a bottom surface 26 and a circumextending sidewall 27. The interior of the dish is divided into three shallow chambers by internal partition walls 28, the central such chamber 29 being larger than the other two and arranged to be filled with warm water up to a marked safe fill level 30 for a purpose to be explained. As can also be seen in FIG. 4, the underside of base portion 6 is provided with handhold recesses 31, while upper portion 4 has correspondingly located thumb recesses 32 on its outer surface, as best shown in FIG. 1, the handhold recesses and thumb recesses together enabling a person to carry the housing with the chamber 29 in base portion 6 underneath floor 7 filled with warm water and wells 8 filled with a quantity of nail treatment solution, without spilling water or solution. Underneath 33 of bottom surface 26 is provided with respective feet 34 so that the main part of underneath 33 is separated by a short distance from any surface on which the nail bath is stood.

It will be understood from the drawings and from the description above that the generally closed housing 2 defined by the cooperating cover 4 and base portion 6 is divided into two separate chambers by the floor 7 defined by plate 5. Plate 5 is trapped between the cover and base portions as they are clipped together, and rests on internal partition walls 28 and, via well bottoms 9, on the inside of bottom surface 26 of base portion 6. It is located by two notches 35 (FIG. 5) in its side edges that marry with respective projections 36 (FIGS. 4 and 5) on the inside of sidewall 27 of the base portion 6. As can be seen from the sectional views of FIGS. 10, 11 and 12, edges 37 of the base portion 6 are recessed on their inner sides, while corresponding edges 38 of the cover 4 are recessed on their outer sides, so that edges 38 and 37 of the cover and base portions fit together. The upper chamber accessible through openings 3 and the underfloor chamber 29, which may be previously filled with warm water, are separated by plate 5 when upper portion 4 is clipped to the base portion 6.

A user's hand may be inserted through an opening 3, as shown in FIG. 12 to immerse their nails in respective wells 8 that were filled with nail treatment solution before cover 4 was clipped in place. The inserted hand will largely block opening 3, thereby reducing evaporation of solution to atmosphere. Accordingly, vapour from the nail treatment solution is largely retained within the upper chamber defined by cover 4 and plate 5, reducing problems regarding health and safety. Sidewalls 10 of the wells 8 are surrounded by warm water, making the immersion a pleasant experience for the user and hastening the treatment.

At least cover 4 may be formed of transparent plastics material so that a user can see their hands while the treatment is in progress.

In a second embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14, the plate 5 providing floor surface 7 is connected to the base portion 6 by one or more fasteners that suitably screw through the underside of base portion 6 into posts depending from the underside of floor surface 7 to form a generally closed unit 39 in which an underfloor chamber corresponding to chamber 29 of the embodiment of FIGS. 1-12 is provided internally. In alternative arrangements, base portion 6 and floor surface 7 may be joined by adhesive, by melt welding, or by a combination of two or more of fasteners, adhesive and melt welding. In order for the internal chamber within unit 39 to be filled with warm water, a nozzle 40 is provided, as shown in FIG. 14, closable by a screw cap 41, shown in FIG. 13.

In the first described embodiment, cover 4 is clipped to base portion 6 to trap plate 5 therebetween to hold the nail bath together for use. This is no longer necessary in the embodiment of FIGS. 13 and 14, so that cover 4 in this embodiment may simply fit loosely on floor surface 7. In order to provide proper location, upstanding wall portions 42, here shown castellated and spaced from each other, are inset slightly from periphery 43 of unit 39. Front 19 and rear 20 sidewalls of cover 4 simply fit over the upstanding wall portions 42 and sit on narrow ledges 44 effectively defined between the upstanding wall portions 42 and periphery 43. It will readily be appreciated that alternative locating means could be employed instead.

Several breather holes 45 are formed through cover 4 at a position corresponding to that of nozzle 40 and cap 41 in unit 39. A line 46 visible on the top surface of cover 4 marks the position of a depending internal wall on the underside of cover 4 that defines a volume separated from the remainder of the underside of cover 4 by that internal wall. Any water vapour that might escape from the nozzle during use of the nail bath will be vented to the exterior via this volume without entering the space within which the user places their hands. 

1-9. (canceled)
 10. A portable nail bath comprising: a surface provided with one or more wells for nail treatment solution, the disposition of said one or more wells generally corresponding to the positions of the ends of the fingers and thumbs of a hand of a user, and a cover cooperating with said surface to define a housing in which said surface serves as a floor, said housing substantially enclosing a space defined between said floor and said cover, apart from an opening through which the hand of a user extends into said space during use of the nail bath, wherein said floor cooperates with a bottom surface to define an underfloor chamber that is both closed and beneath said floor when said nail bath is in use for treatment of a user's nails, said underfloor chamber being adapted to be filled with warm water, the or each well being defined by a circumextending sidewall and a well bottom, and the or each said well extending down into said underfloor chamber, so that at least said sidewall(s) may be surrounded by warm water when such water is contained in said underfloor chamber.
 11. A portable nail bath according to claim 10, wherein there are individual wells for each finger and thumb.
 12. A portable nail bath according to claim 10, wherein the surface includes a raised pad disposed for resting the palm of a hand thereon when the ends of the fingers and thumb of that hand are disposed in said well(s).
 13. A portable nail bath according to claim 10, formed from three plastics components, namely said cover, said floor surface and said base portion, the cover and base portion being adapted to releasably clip together, said floor surface being provided by a plate adapted to be trapped between said cover and said base when clipped together.
 14. A portable nail bath according to claim 10, formed from three plastics components, namely said cover, said floor surface and said base portion, the floor surface and base portion being connected together by at least one of fasteners, adhesive and melt welding to form a generally closed unit in which said underfloor chamber is provided internally, said chamber being provided with an openable nozzle for filling with warm water or emptying, and wherein said cover fits over said unit.
 15. A portable nail bath according to claim 10, further provided with handhold portions to facilitate carrying the nail bath with the floor generally horizontal to avoid spillage of nail treatment solution from said wells.
 16. A portable nail bath according to claim 15, wherein the handhold portions comprise a main hand-receiving portion on the underside of the base portion and a thumb receiving portion on the outer side of the cover.
 17. A portable nail bath comprising: a surface provided with one or more wells for nail treatment solution, the disposition of said one or more wells generally corresponding to the positions of the ends of the fingers and thumbs of the two hands of a user, and a cover cooperating with said surface to define a housing in which said surface serves as a floor, said housing substantially enclosing a space defined between said floor and said cover, apart from openings through which the hands of a user extend into said space during use of the nail bath, wherein said floor cooperates with a bottom surface to define an underfloor chamber that is both closed and beneath said floor when said nail bath is in use for treatment of a user's nails, said underfloor chamber being adapted to be filled with warm water, the or each well being defined by a circumextending sidewall and a well bottom, and the or each said well extending down into said underfloor chamber, so that at least said sidewall(s) may be surrounded by warm water when such water is contained in said underfloor chamber.
 18. A portable nail bath according to claim 17, wherein there are individual wells for each finger and thumb.
 19. A portable nail bath according to claim 17, wherein the surface includes a raised pad disposed for resting the palm of a hand thereon when the ends of the fingers and thumb of that hand are disposed in said well(s).
 20. A portable nail bath according to claim 17, formed from three plastics components, namely said cover, said floor surface and said base portion, the cover and base portion being adapted to releasably clip together, said floor surface being provided by a plate adapted to be trapped between said cover and said base when clipped together.
 21. A portable nail bath according to claim 17, formed from three plastics components, namely said cover, said floor surface and said base portion, the floor surface and base portion being connected together by at least one of fasteners, adhesive and melt welding to form a generally closed unit in which said underfloor chamber is provided internally, said chamber being provided with an openable nozzle for filling with warm water or emptying, and wherein said cover fits over said unit.
 22. A portable nail bath according to claim 17, further provided with handhold portions to facilitate carrying the nail bath with the floor generally horizontal to avoid spillage of nail treatment solution from said wells.
 23. A portable nail bath according to claim 22, wherein the handhold portions comprise a main hand-receiving portion on the underside of the base portion and a thumb receiving portion on the outer side of the cover. 